126 



ON THE GENERAL DIFFUSION OF KNOWLEDGE. 



grounded. On such a mind, the most weighty 

 arguments and the most cogent reasonings make 

 no sensible impression. It may be susceptible 

 of being biassed against religion by the sneers 

 and sarcasms of jovial companions, and the ri 

 dicule with which they may treat the truths of 

 revelation, but it is unqualified either to rebut 

 such impertinences, or to appreciate the excel 

 lencies of Christianity, the foundation on which 

 it rests, and the benignant tendency of its doc 

 trines and precepls. And if, in the present day, 

 a man has no acquaintance with the grounds and 

 reasons of revealed religion, and the evidences 

 on which its truth and divinity rest, he will not 

 only be indifferent to the observance of its pre 

 cepts, and destitute of its supports and consola 

 tions, but will be constantly liable to be turned 

 aside to the paths of folly and intemperance, and 

 to become thv) prey of unthinking fools and scoff 

 ing infidels. Whereas, when a man can give a 

 reason of the hope that is in him, his religion be 

 comes a delightful and a rational service, and he 

 is enabled to put to silence the scoffs and vain 

 cavillings of foolish and unreasonable men. 



Besides assisting us in investigating the evi 

 dences of religion a certain portion of general 

 information is highly useful, and even necessary 

 fm enabling us to understand the Sacred writings. 

 t is true, indeed, that the leading doctrines of 

 revelation, respecting the attributes of God, the 

 mediation of Christ, the way in which salvation 

 is to be obtained, the grand principles of moral 

 action, and the duties connected with the several 

 relations of life, are detailed with such plainness 

 and perspicuity as to be level to the comprehen 

 sion of every reflecting mind, however unskilled 

 in literature or science. But there are certain 

 portions of Revelation, necessary &quot; to make the 

 man of God perfect,&quot; the study of which requires 

 the exertion of all our faculties, and the applica 

 tion of every branch of human knowledge we 

 can possibly acquire. This arises from the very 

 nature of the subjects treated of, and from the li 

 mited faculties of the human mind. To illus 

 trate this idea is the object of the following re 

 marks. 



1. A considerable portion of Scripture is oc 

 cupied with prophetical declarations, in refe 

 rence to events which have long since taken 

 place, to those which are now happening, and to 

 those which will hereafter happen in the future 

 ages of the world. It contains a series of pre 

 dictions which embrace the leading outlines of 

 the history of the world, from its commencement 

 to its final consummation. Now, in order to trace 

 the accomplishment of these predictions, and to 

 perceive clearly the events to which they refer, 

 a minute acquaintance with ancient and modern 

 history is indispensably requisite : for it is in 

 nistory, either sacred or civil, that their accom 

 plishment is recorded. And, could we, with 

 one comprehensive glance, lake a survey of all 



the leading events which the history of the worVj 

 records, we should be enabled, when reading the 

 prophetical writings, to perceive, at every step, 

 the ideas and purposes of that All-Comprehen 

 sive Mind that &quot; knoweth the end from the be 

 ginning,&quot; and his faithfulness in accomplishing 

 the promises, and executing the threatening^ of 

 his word. A knowledge of Chronology is also 

 requisite, in order to ascertain the time in which 

 predictions were uttered, and the periods to 

 which they refer and of Ancient Geography, 

 to determine the localities of those tribes or na 

 tions to which the prophecies have a reference, 

 and their relative positions with regard to each 

 other. In particular, it is necessary to be ac 

 quainted with the Figurative style in which pro 

 phecy is conveyed, in order to understand the 

 writings of the ancient prophets. These writ 

 ings, in common with those of most of the Eas 

 tern nations, are highly poetical, and abound in 

 Allegories, Parables and Metaphors. The Al 

 legory is that mode of speech in which the writ 

 er or speaker means to convey a different idea 

 from what the words in their primary signification 

 bear. Thus, &quot; Break up your fallow-ground, 

 and sow not among thorns,&quot;* is to be under 

 stood, not of tillage, but of repentance ; and these 

 words, &quot; Thy rowers have brought thee into 

 great waters, the east wind hath broken thee in 

 the midst of the seas,&quot;f allude, not to the fate 

 of a ship, but to the fate of a city. Of all the 

 figures used by the prophets, the most frequent is 

 the Metaphor, by which words are transferred 

 from their plain and primary, to their figurative 

 and secondary meaning. One of the most co 

 pious sources of those metaphors to which the 

 sacred writers resort, is the scenery of Nature. 

 The Sun, Moon, and Stars, the highest and 

 most splendid objects in the natural world, figu 

 ratively represent kings, queens, and princes or 

 rulers, the highest in the political world, as in 

 the following passages, &quot; The moon shall be 

 confounded, and the sun ashamed. &quot;J &quot; I will 

 cover the heavens, and make the stars thereof 

 dark ; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the 

 moon shall not give her light.&quot; Light and 

 darkness are used figuratively for joy and sor 

 row, prosperity and adversity ; as, &quot; We wait 

 for light, but behold obscurity, for brightness, 

 but we walk in darkness ;&quot;|| and likewise for 

 knowledge and ignorance ; &quot; The people that 

 walked in darkness have sen a great light,&quot; &c. 

 Immoderate rains, hail, floods, torrents, inun 

 dations, fire and storms, denote judgments and 

 destruction ; Lebanon remarkable for its height 

 and its stately cedars, is used as an image of 

 majesty and strength ; Carmel, which abounded 

 in vines and olives, as an image of fertility and 

 beauty ; and bullocks of Bashan, rams, .ions, 



Jer. iv. 3. * Ezek. xxvii. 28. I Isaiah xxiT 

 23. Ezek. xxxii. 7. || Isaiah lix, . 



